Blue Mountain League: Prologue
by Gigawolf1
Summary: The prequel to the story, 'Blue Mountain League.' This is about how the League is founded and the region is discovered by the mysterious trainer...
1. A New Begining

Blue Mountain League: Prologue

Disclaimer: I obviously don't own Pokémon

Chapter 1: A New Beginning

Our story begins the way many do; with a young boy checking his backpack to make sure he has everything. However, unlike many stories, this boy doesn't have much. All he has is a bottle of potion and a pair of running shoes. Oh, and his hat. Yes, though this story has similarities, it shall be different. Why? Well, you'll find out by around chapter 20 or so.

Anyway, back to what's important. This young boy, about to start a soul-searching journey, wasn't alone in his quest. Across the street lived the resident evil jerk that needs a serious attitude adjustment. That evil jerk just happened to be the highly spoiled Jack Oak, son of Professor Gary Oak. Anyway, Jack wanted to get a Charmander like his great-grandfather. However, his tendency to sleep in, due to his being spoiled, foiled his plans.

It was approximately 5:00 am when John got up to pick his pokémon. Even though Professor Oak wasn't expecting anyone until around 9:00 am, he let John in. "Well, John, you really want a pokémon, don't you?" Professor Oak asked, though the answer was about as visible from space as Eurasia.

"Yeah, I really want to start. I never had a pokémon before. Anything would be fine. Except Bulbasaur; it's much too slow. Oh, and definitely not a Squirtle, either, for the same reason. And also not a Chikorita. All three are slow. Okay?" asked John. However, this was not okay. Gary only had three pokémon available; two of which John said wouldn't work. However, the last one was a descendent of Gary's grandfather's first pokémon. It was also the pokémon promised to Jack. On one hand, Jack really wanted this pokémon, and it could probably change him for the better. Although, on the other hand, Jack was spoiled, being the son of a pokémon professor, as Gary himself once was, so maybe Jack should start with something else. And so Gary made a choice, one that if any other decision were to be made, things would have turned out completely different.

"I have just one pokémon I can give to you, then." Moving over to the desk with the pokéballs, Gary picked up the furthest one from John. "This is a very special pokémon. It's a descendent of my grandpa's first pokémon, a..."

"Charmander! Wow, Jack is going to be in shock that I got one too! He's been bragging that you were going to give him one, and now, I'm getting...one...too?" said John, first euphorically (spelt it right first time!), and then questioningly, for he realized there was no other Charmander. In his hand was the pokémon promised to Jack, that for some reason Professor Oak gave to him instead.

Gary looked at John, before remembering he told Jack to be at the lab for 6:00 am to get a head start. Checking his watch, it showed him that it was still only 5:03 am. This is probably the reason he was so shocked to see that Jack, who had never woken up before 7:30 am in his life, was standing in the doorway. Jack had been incredibly excited, and had woken up almost an hour before his father expected him. John was getting ready to leave during this and barely noticed his rival glaring at him with such hatred that would have made a Venusaur run in fear.

As John left for home, he could barely hear Jack questioning his father as to why he didn't get a good pokémon. Gary tried to explain that it was promised 'First come, first serve,' the way Professor Samuel Oak made it about a decade earlier. As John said goodbye to his family and left for Viridian, Jack finally accepted defeat. Jack decided to take a Squirtle, like his dad got. Well, Gary thought he had gotten through to his son, but in reality, Jack was plotting his revenge.

'First come, huh? I'll make that weakling see that he isn't worthy of a pokémon, except for a Magikarp! Once Squirtle evolves, I'll challenge him to a battle. Then, I'll take Charmander, or whatever it evolved into, and make great-grandpa proud,' schemed Jack in his head after leaving his dad's lab. He had gotten ready to leave right away so that he wouldn't have to wait too long. As he left Pallet town, he saw John also almost out of Pallet. 'Well then,' he thought, 'we'll have a battle here so I know his tricks,' for you see, Jack was cunning.

However, John challenged Jack first. "Hey, Jack! Wanna battle? Test out the moves, get a feel for battle, and that stuff?" Jack, instead of replying, just threw Squirtle's pokéball. John realized his mistake almost the same moment he threw Charmander into battle. It was early in the morning, and still dark out. As long as Charmander was alive, Squirtle could see him. Jack figured this out too, and immediately told Squirtle to take advantage of this. What happened then was a barrage of well-aimed tackles and almost pointless growls. Soon, though, John noticed the rising sun, and the location of Squirtle. John decided that now was the time. "Scratch!" ordered John. Charmander, inspired by the change of battle strategy, scratched Squirtle on the front of the shell, leaving open spots where the claws had hit.

John realized (his third one!) that Jack's Squirtle must be so young that it's shell had not yet been fully developed. After Jack had used his potion, Squirtle still was in immense pain. John looked at Charmander, who only nodded. Charmander was still trying to understand how he could do so much damage while John gave his potion to Squirtle, who looked at Charmander with the same glare Jack gave John earlier. And so begins a quest so monumental and yet so weird that you will take about a day to read all the chapters (30 already planned) that come before it really gets started (4).

AN: For those of you who don't know, John is one of the original names in Blue version, which was my first. I found it better than Gary and Blue, plus I was too lazy to put my real name. Jack is John's rival from the game, since Gary's rival was Ash and Blue's was obviously Red. I also started with Charmander in Blue. Despite this basis, the story is actually based on Fire Red/Ruby, my two Pokémon Advance Cartridges.


	2. The Forest of Four Shadows

Blue Mountain League: Prologue

Disclaimer: I still don't own Pokémon

Chapter 2: The Forest of Four Shadows

Well, when we last left off, John had Charmander, Jack had Squirtle, and Squirtle had a few new scars. Jack ran towards Viridian to get Squirtle healed properly. Now, we join John as he gets to Viridian, and the reason he took so long is because he was trying to catch pokémon, which he finally realized is hard without pokéballs. So, to make sure I don't bore you (yet), we'll skip to when he gets the pokéballs.

"How much do pokéballs cost?" asked John after finally reaching the front of the line. The guy at the counter looked at him, and then pointed to the sign. The sign showed that pokéballs cost $200 each. Checking his trainer card, he found he had a mere $1000. Buying his five pokéballs, he was about to leave when the guy at the counter called him back.

"Hey, you John?" asked the cashier. When John nodded, he asked, "Why?" Though it isn't the most thrilling conversation, it is important. "Well, Prof. Oak sent up a pokédex for ya. Said it was special, something about extra features." Obviously, John was quite happy about his visit to Viridian. Nothing good enough to mention, just John walking into people's houses uninvited and being forced out. So next I'll mention something curious. Curiously suspicious. Or whatever.

Reaching Viridian Forest, John had seen nothing but Rattata. Those rodents freaked him and Charmander out, so they avoided them. Then, in one of the most coincidental circumstances in this story (now have all 46 chapters planned!), John looked up just in time to see a Spearow flying overhead. So, by some strange primal reflex, John threw the first pokéball, and managed to hit the bird. However, Spearow's altitude and speed made the pokéball fall into Viridian Forest. John felt confident about his first capture, however, because Spearow had been caught unawares.

Traveling into the forest is usually a bad idea, and when the only pokémon you have can be seen, despite being unable to see in the dark, it's even worse. John turned back to check on Charmander, but he first noticed the Gastly fluttering around his tail. John thought quickly, and realized that Charmander only knew scratch. Or so he thought. Charmander quickly launched an ember into the Gastly, which tried to flutter off, despite the burn.

" Yes! Charmander learnt ember!" yelled John excitedly. However, this quickly died down as he remembered that the Gastly would have been an easy catch. Moping, he went deeper into the forest with Charmander, for the sole purpose of finding the Spearow. However, when they got to where the pokéball fell, there was only a small hole in the ground… and the Gastly. Grinning, Gastly cried out a few times, and it's friends emerged from the surrounding forest. Gastly's friends were an Abra, a Machop, and a Geodude, the last of which was the only without some form of tail. Gastly fainted from the burn just then, as burns deal constant damage.

As Machop and Geodude began attacking Charmander, John looked over at Abra. The small psychic seemed to be sleeping, though it was moving its' fingers back and forth. As John watched, Charmander tried an ember on Geodude, to no avail. The rock was unharmed. Charmander was fruitlessly fighting the two as John tried to figure out what the Abra was doing. Suddenly, he realized there could only be one explanation.

"Charmander, look out! It's metronome!" John warned, barely in time. Charmander, who had also figured it out, looked at Abra in time to figure out which move the ever-random metronome would produce. To the non-sarcastic luck of John and Charmander, it was explosion, the strongest move, which also knocks out the user. The explosion completely missed Geodude and Charmander, while knocking the future superpower pokémon into unconsciousness. With the defeat of its' allies, Geodude might have tried to escape. However, Geodude had already taken Charmander's strongest attack with barely any damage at all.

Running away from the blast area, John and Charmander saw a Metapod, which, being no more than a green cocoon with eyes and a nose, is really annoying. All it does is stiffen its muscles to make sure no one gets into the actual creature. As they watched, Geodude came bursting out of the forest, shaking the ground with magnitude 7.

"Magnitude 7? Is that thing crazy? The trees will start falling on it!" asked John. Obviously perplexed, he soon realized why. "It's trying to draw us out, Charmander. But we can't beat it. Not yet. The only move you learn that can beat a rock-type is…" Then John remembered the pokédex. Checking the menu, he found a level tracker. Aiming the electronic eye at Charmander, John's suspicions were confirmed. They quickly made a plan. As Geodude came by, Charmander jumped on top of it. Then, when Geodude tried to roll away, Charmander jumped off, so Geodude crashed into a tree. As it was recovering, Charmander's claws began to glow. As Geodude turned around, Charmander used metal claw to cut the hard rock body of Geodude until the small boulder fainted (4 metal claws was all it took).

Looking at the defeated Geodude, John had a sense of self-reassurance. Charmander had won another battle, and managed to reach level 13. He was brought out of these thoughts as he felt Charmander pull on his leg. Looking up, he saw that the Metapod was glowing. As they watched, it evolved into Butterfree. They saw it flying up and up, and thought of how Butterfree came from bad begginings to a beautiful life, went from a lowly worm to being able to soar, and they thought of how that Butterfree's life represented their own, and how they would end up. They were still watching when the Pidgeotto dived out of the air and tried to eat the Butterfree. John, on total reflex, threw a pokéball up to catch Pidgeotto, but the bird knocked it away. However, it was distracted long enough for Butterfree to use stun spore, and fly away. Pidgeotto just fell into the forest.

John looked down from where the aerial battle took place. Turning around, he saw the exit of the forest. He and Charmander nodded knowingly at each other, then ran towards the light, ready for their next battles as a team.

AN: If you haven't already figured it out yet, the title doesn't refer to the four pokémon; it refers to the fact that a lot of this is going to be important later in the story. Which parts will be important is for me to know and for you to find out in chapters 44 - 46


	3. Stone Cold Defence

Blue Mountain League: Prologue

Disclaimer: I wish I did own pokémon

Chapter 3: Stone-Cold Defense

All right, you'd better get used to recaps being done, because they're going to appear a lot over the story. Well, last time, John used two of his five pokéballs. Now he's broke, but Charmander is level 13 (he started at level 5). As we left the pair, they were leaving the Viridian Forest after a dangerous battle that involved four very different pokémon. They found a path next to a patch of grass, and where the path led them to is a place of hopes, dreams, and fossils in a museum: Pewter City.

John and Charmander walked towards the Pokémon Center, which has a P.C., along with the free restoring service, used to revive and fully heal pokémon, instead of waiting for a long time or using an item. John looked towards the escalator that led up to the Union Room and Trading Center. Taking Charmander up to the counter, John was concerned, because a lot of people were staring at John strangely.

"Hello, Nurse Joy. Could you heal my Charmander please?" John asked. As Nurse Joy took John's Charmander, she asked, "Are you here to challenge Brock with only a Charmander?" John was startled; he realized that since Bulbasaur and Squirtle have advantages against Brock's pokémon, most people expected anyone from Pallet Town to either have one of those two, or have a Butterfree to help. John, remembering the powerful Geodude from the forest, told them about how metal claw saved them, and would work wonders against Brock's Onix. One guy just turned and grunted, "Yeah, right!" Looking at the far end of the counter, he saw a kid with a Jigglypuff. As Nurse Joy gave him Charmander back, he started walking towards the kid. As he started talking to the kid, the people around the lobby started to shout, "No! Don't do that! Are you crazy!" Then, he poked the Jigglypuff.

Now, John knew why they were shouting. Few people wouldn't have known. But he did it just so he could torture them. After poking Jigglypuff, John and Charmander rushed out the door as fast as they could. They ran north, towards the Museum, to get away from the noise. Calling Charmander back into his pokéball, John tried to tour the Museum. However, it costs money to get into the Museum, so he couldn't get in. Going east, he found a way out of town. As they tried to leave, a kid jumped out from behind a bush. "Hey, you can't leave without facing Brock!" said the kid.

Obviously annoyed, John asked, "Why not, kid?"

The kid, also becoming annoyed at the situation, said, "Because the trainers east of here are incredibly strong. Level 20 for each pokémon, and some of them have four pokémon."

John gave in at this thought. He definitely couldn't go through them without having to come back to heal often, which he couldn't do because of the disturbance he caused earlier. "Lead the way, kid," he said exasperatedly. Smirking, the small kid led the way to Brock's gym. As they went past the Museum, the kid said, "Hey, did you hear what happened at the Pokémon Center?"

It was John's turn to smirk. He was following the kid, so he didn't worry about him seeing the smirk. John thought how funny it was that the kid should ask him that. "No," he replied with a grin, "I didn't hear a thing." For those of you who don't know, Jigglypuff like to sing. Now, when Jigglypuff sing, they cause major disturbances. The sound is the only problem to people. What makes it funny, though, is that some Jigglypuff take after a really strong one from about 15 years ago, who used a marker on all her unconscious victims to draw goofy faces on them. As he finished thinking about this, he realized that he was in front of the gym.

John walked into the gym to find Brock. The building was filled with boulders all over the place. Looking ahead, he could see a path through the quarry-like building. Going forward, he quickly realized that there was a side path. Due to some hearsay from Pallet Town a long time ago, there was a trainer waiting on the main path. John looked, and, sure enough, there was a trainer looking straight in front of him. Thinking quickly, John ducked behind some boulders to the side. Sneaking around to the back of the building, John was pleased with his quick thinking, until he thought of something very important: he didn't know where Brock was. Fortunately (or maybe unfortunately), he didn't have to wonder for long. As it turns out, by sneaking around, he had ended up right in front of the leader.

"Are you here to challenge me, kid?" asked Brock. Now, for those of you who don't know, the gyms in pokémon aren't places where you work out or participate in sports. In the world of pokémon, gyms are places where aspiring trainers go to win gym challenges against the leader, who specializes in a particular type of pokémon, such as fire-type, water-type, or rock-type gyms. Upon beating each gym leader in a pokémon battle, the challenger receives a badge, which is proof of their victory. Certain types are stronger against others, such as water against rock, which can greatly affect strategy. However, a higher-level pokémon often knows better moves, almost always has better stats.

"Wha?" asked John, completely startled, as he heard Brock ask him. Realizing who was speaking, John swiftly replied, "Yeah! Of course I am!"

Brock grinned. "Good. You better give me a good battle, because I haven't had one in a long time." Thinking, he added, "How many badges do you have so far?"

Confused, John replied, "None. This is my first gym battle. Why, is there some problem?"

"No, I just wanted to know if you understood how the gyms work," answered Brock, though John felt that the leader was holding something back. "The leader always goes first, so I'll use Geodude!" shouted Brock. John tried to think about what to do against Brock when he realized what Brock had sent out.

"Go, Charmander!" John yelled. John smirked at the shocked and amused expression on Brock's face. No way had the leader expected this. John quickly yelled, "Remember the one from the forest!" to which Charmander swiftly responded by, once again, jumping on Geodude and hacking away at the rock. After Geodude faints, thought John, he's going to send out Onix, and then the battle really starts. As he thought this, Geodude finally fainted. Charmander was left startled by the sudden change from 1'4" boulder to 28'10" rock snake.

"The look on your face while be priceless when you see just how strong Onix is. No one can beat rock-types!" Brock gleefully shouted. This was before he saw Charmander running up Onix like a staircase. Upon reaching the head, Charmander started using metal claw to try to beat Onix, to almost no avail. John, upon seeing this, came up with a new strategy.

"Use ember for a moment!" yelled John, completely to the surprise of Brock. 'No one ever uses ember on rock-types and honestly expects to win,' thought Brock, ' What's he up to?'

Brock's shock was intensified when Charmander successfully burned Onix, and then resumed the barrage of metal claw. As Brock looked on, he noticed that, though Charmander's had to change to metal and back for each individual strike, the claws were partially staying metallic sometimes, making the damage increase. Before he knew it, Onix was fainted.

Exasperatedly, Brock admitted defeat. "Congratulations," the leader announced, "you beat me. And that means," he said as he reached into his pocket, "that you earned these." John walked forward, and saw that the leader held out the Boulder Badge and a Technique Machine, or TM, for rock tomb. "Use this TM to teach one of your pokémon rock tomb."

"I don't think Charmander wants that kind of move," replied John.

"Well, why not one of your other pokémon?"

John laughed at this. "Charmander is my only pokémon," he said.

At this, Brock just had to laugh, too, and said, "Go east of here, towards Cerulean City. There're only weak trainers east of here, and most of them have bug-types. They'll be easy for you!"

John started laughing, until he realized that the kid had lied to him, so John just left the gym. After getting outside, John noticed that Charmander was racing east, ready to battle a couple of weak trainers. Catching up, John saw the kid again. Calling him over, he told the kid, who was one of Brock's little brothers, that Brock himself had told him that the trainers to the east were all weak. "Why did you lie to me, kid?" asked John. However, he was greatly startled when the kid gave his response.

"Well, you see, all the trainers east of here were beaten by a really strong trainer, and some of them are my brothers and sisters. After taking their money, he told me to force all trainers to go face Brock first, or else he'd attack me with his pokémon. But, he said to make the guy with the Charmander go through. Sorry for lying, here are some running shoes to make up for it."

However, John was busy thinking. The really strong trainer hadn't said a guy with **_a_** Charmander; he said the guy with **_the_** Charmander. John could only think of one person who would want John to go east without facing anyone to gain experience from. Snapping out of it, John asked, "Which pokémon did this guy use?"

"He used a Squirtle, one that took every hit without a scratch. But the weird thing is, it had a scar, as though it had been attacked when it was really young. It moved so fast, as though it didn't want anything to touch that scar. Wonder how it got it?"

John, however, knew exactly how Squirtle got the scar. He merely said, "Jack," and headed east, towards Mt. Moon.

AN: Well, John has his first, badge, and the adventure will really begin soon, so get ready for the next chapter of the Blue Mountain League: Prologue!


	4. Mountain of Lost Dreams

Blue Mountain League: Prologue

Disclaimer: Those who do own pokémon are rich, and do not have to write fanfiction

Chapter 4: The Mountain of Lost Dreams

Well, once again, it's recap time. Last time, John got to Pewter City, and 'disturbed the peace' by poking a Jigglypuff, who promptly started singing, though by that time, John and Charmander were almost out of the city, when a kid popped up out of nowhere. Telling John that he couldn't go east without beating Brock, leader of the Pewter City Gym, John reluctantly entered in his first gym battle. After beating Brock's Onix, John earned the Boulder Badge. It was then that John was told that the trainers to the east were actually relatively weak. When John was leaving, he saw the kid again, and upon questioning, the kid, one of Brock's younger brothers, revealed that a strong trainer beat everyone to the east, and didn't want anyone to follow, or else he would attack the kid again. (breathes in deeply) John quickly realized that the strong trainer was Jack, John's rival. We left John and Charmander as they head east, towards Mt. Moon.

John and Charmander had been walking for what seemed to be hours, maybe even days, which means they were walking (at a very leisurely pace) for two minutes. Anyway, they came upon a guy and his Pidgey sleeping in the grass. However, they looked like they were in very unnatural poses, mostly due to the bump on the guy's face and the fact he was lying face-down, with his Pidgey on top of a wild Rattata, as though it landed unexpectedly. As John looked around, he realized that everyone and everything in the area was rather quite, excepting the occasional snore. As John thought, Charmander realized the reason, and quickly motioned for John to cover his ears.

"What is it, Charmander? Is it a…" started John, before realizing that a Jigglypuff had done this. Now, during the last chapter, John knocked out a whole Pokémon Center by getting a Jigglypuff to sing, and that was a trained one, in an enclosed area. But in the wild, it is much easier to stay awake through the song technique, which, when successful, automatically puts the opponent to sleep. Though they are generally weak, their sing technique is highly annoying to those who fall victim to it. The pair decided to run like the wind towards Mt. Moon, where Jigglypuff don't dare to go, mostly because of how dark it is.

As they approached the entrance to the cave, John saw a Pokémon Center, which had been made there so that people could rest outside of Mt. Moon, which you had to go through to reach Cerulean City from Pewter. John went in to heal Charmander, but noticed the long line first. Asking the person at the end, he was told that a strong trainer with a Squirtle had beaten all of them in a single trip through. John knew he was getting even closer to Jack. John turned to leave, but the person at the front of the line called him up. "Hey, maybe you can beat him. You get healed first, then you go 'n' take him down!" said a trainer with a really beaten-up Rattata.

After Charmander was healed, John went into Mt. Moon to find Jack. Journeying deep into the cave, John wondered why he didn't see any wild pokémon. As he went further inwards, he climbed many ladders, but still didn't see Jack or any wild pokémon. As he followed the main path, he saw a small passageway, and, going through, saw a fossil. "It's a Dome Fossil!" cried John excitedly.

"Hand it over to me," said a voice, one that John hoped he would hear.

"No way, Jack. When I get to Cinnabar Island, they'll revive it, and maybe by then I'll have more pokémon," said John adamantly.

Jack smirked at this. "So, you still only have Charmander, huh?"

"I think my pokéballs are faulty," retaliated John. He said this because, of the five he originally had, he had used two, and he hadn't even seen anything happen, though a Spearow did go in for a while.

Jack turned serious at this. "Really, let me try one." He quickly took one from John. Looking around, he spotted a solitary Zubat, which seemed to be asleep. Without eyes, it was hard to tell if something was asleep. As Jack threw the pokéball, the Zubat tried to flutter away. John watched as the Zubat entered the pokéball. The button glowed red as the pokéball shook three times. When the light turned off, the ball stopped shaking, showing that the Zubat was caught. Jack went over and picked up the ball.

"Thanks," said John, "can I have my Zubat now?"

Jack grinned at this. "Poor, naïve John. This isn't your Zubat; it's mine. I threw the pokéball. I caught it, and it's mine. It'll be a great addition to my team," he taunted.

"Your WHAT?" shouted John, in complete amazement. Never, in his life, had he expected Jack to take a pokémon from someone else. Not only was it illegal, it was stupid. Catching a Zubat was something people did, as easily as eating or drinking. Most trainers wouldn't have given Jack's statement a second thought, but John did. "If you already have a team, why did you steal Zubat?" inquired John.

Jack laughed at John's confusion. "Because, I only have a really small team. Zubat makes three," replied Jack through his laughter.

John wondered what he had. 'I know he has Squirtle, and he said Zubat makes three, so that leaves one unaccounted for,' thought John, 'and the only way to know for sure is to battle.' So John yelled out, "Go, Charmander!" and out came the small lizard. Jack quietly sent out Zubat, and the battle began. One ember later, Zubat was gone. Jack merely smirked as he sent out his next pokémon: Spearow.

"No way! You stole my first catch!" yelled John. At this point, he quickly realized that he hadn't seen or heard Spearow be caught; though Spearow probably would have attacked them if unsuccessful. However, for now, all he could do was beat Spearow, and that took four ember attacks. Jack sent out Squirtle, and John saw, for the first time, just how bad the scars were. Though they were mostly healed over, Squirtle would probably have them for the rest of his life.

"Metal claw, Charmander! Try to hit his head," ordered John, hoping that Charmander's newest and so far very helpful move would do more damage. However, luck was not with him, for Squirtle would have completely ignored every single metal claw, if Charmander hadn't been his only opponent. Squirtle, light as he was, started to enter a series of hard-to-imitate evasive techniques, which quickly shrugged off Charmander. As John remembered that water-types have resistance to steel-type moves, Charmander became too tired to dodge one of Squirtle's tackles. As the battle raged on, John could see that Jack was still after the fossil, so John quickly grabbed it and put it in his bag. Looking up, John realized that the battle had revealed another small cave, one with a hole in the ground. As the two pokémon fought, Jack saw the hole as well.

"Finish it! Water gun!" commanded Jack. Squirtle obliged, and a stream of water hit Charmander. Though he tried to fight it, he was pushed back towards the hole. John only had a second to decide what to do, and he ran as fast as he could towards the hole. As he approached the hole, Charmander finally had to give in and get knocked down the hole. However, John quickly jumped to try and save Charmander. Holding tight to his friend, John plummeted into the deep dark recesses of the earth.

Jack went over to the edge, and watched as the light from Charmander's tail slowly dimmed. Looking around, he realized that no one could ever find John or Charmander if the whole cavern was sealed up. Using Squirtle to start a small rockslide, the entrance to the cavern, which held the hole that John had disappeared into, was sealed tight.

As Jack walked away, he thought, "I killed him. I killed him and no one will ever find out. I can do anything, and as long as they don't catch me, it doesn't matter. Whatever I want, I can just take it. Whatever, wherever, whenever. The world belongs to me!"

Of course, this story isn't about Jack. This story is about John. And right now, he's at the bottom of a pit, in a small pool, wide enough to get out of easily, and deep enough to survive a long fall from. He was holding Charmander, whose tail was glowing dimly, but starting to recover. John was thankful that the two of them had survived, and didn't notice a pair of eyes in the water…

AN: Well, the plot change just happened. The next 42 chapters are going to be in a brand-new place, with a bunch of pokémon.


	5. Aqua Cave

Blue Mountain League: Prologue

Disclaimer: I want to work for the Pokémon Company someday

Chapter 5: Aqua Cave

Lucky reader, I'll give you a bit of a break. You'll have to find out why John is in a cave with a small pool in chapter four, so no recap. Needless to say, Charmander is resting. John looked over towards the pool before remembering the fossil. Checking it, he saw it was fine. Looking up, he thought about the fall, and how the deep water had kept him from being crushed. Thinking back, he thought he remembered something touching his leg. Looking back at where he left Charmander, he noticed that the lizard was gone. Checking around the cave quickly, he saw a small light in one direction, he ran that way. Hearing what sounded like thunder, he became concerned for Charmander. Upon reaching the fire-type, he discovered the source of the sound was a waterfall inside a large cave. After becoming re-oriented from the fall, he realized that the path to the cave went uphill from the pool. Going back, he found another creek flowing downhill. However, at the time, John and Charmander didn't know which way was which, and thought they were getting closer to a way out. They were, but not the way they were hoping.

Neither noticed as a small creature watched them from the water before following the pair.

AN: I know it's short, but it gives everyone a nice break. Have fun guessing what was in the water.


	6. Run Silent, run in your sleep

Blue Mountain League: Prologue

Disclaimer: The show would be different if I owned Pokémon

Chapter 6: Run Silent, Run in Your Sleep

The last chapter was so short, there's no reason to review it. Anyway, John and Charmander were following a creek, when Charmander saw the sunlight. John, on the other hand, was really tired, because of all that had happened over the day. Running ahead, Charmander exited the cave to see rolling plains, ending only so that a forest could begin. Charmander gaped at the sight of majestic mountains that rose into the sky. As Charmander took the sights in, John managed to get out of the cave. After that, though, he fell face-first into the creek, which Charmander soon noticed became a river.

John woke up several hours later, and was surprised by how dark it was. Getting up and looking around, he realized that he was far from the cave. Checking his surroundings, John saw that Charmander was asleep. John soon understood that they had gotten down-river somewhere in the time since he collapsed from exhaustion. Surprisingly, John was pretty dry; only his head was wet.

Charmander woke up around this time, and looked over towards the river. Though earlier that day it was quite peaceful, it seemed like a raging torrent of water was there instead. Fire-types really don't like rivers, especially fast rivers. Charmander noticed John beside the torrent, however, and went against instinct. He probably acted against common sense, too, because the torrential power behind the river could probably have been predicted by anything to not just be a random flux in tides or anything like that at all.

John noticed something was wrong for a few reasons. Number one, the river was splashing onto the bank, and moving much faster than before. The second reason was that Charmander was looking scared. Number three was that a pair of eyes was upriver, just floating there. And the final reason was that the torrent only started a short distance away. Getting up, John realized he was stiff from inactivity. Struggling to stand properly, John was alarmed at the increasing speed of the river. Once he managed to get up and stay up, however, he found it easy to follow instinct: run away from the river, towards the cover of near-by trees. Charmander followed John as he dashed by. Looking back, Charmander saw that, where John had been moments earlier, was part of the river.

John stood under a tree, panting and looking around for Charmander. John was relieved when his pokémon appeared right beside him. Glancing back towards the river, John saw that the torrent had ended. Strangely enough, he thought he also saw a flash of blue. Charmander pulled at John, and when John looked down, the lizard motioned that he was tired. So, tired as they were, they set up a makeshift camp under a tall tree.

Hours later, Charmander opened his tired eyes, and looked over to where John had gone to sleep. To Charmander's horror, John wasn't there! Searching the area quickly, he noticed an odd shape by the river. Running over there, he found John, fast asleep. Curious, Charmander looked around for signs as to how John could have moved back towards the river. Hearing something behind him, Charmander looked up. What he saw was almost as startling as the fact John woke up as Charmander was turning around. What he saw was a Totodile, a water-type. As John tried to figure out what Charmander was looking at, he realized that Totodile was what he had seen in the river when the torrent was destroying the bank. With this new knowledge, John made a split-second decision.

"Go, Charmander!" yelled John. The fire-type knew that John only wanted him to use scratch. However, Totodile just kept on trying to dodge. Because of this strategy, only one out of five scratches hit. Then, Totodile started using water gun, very inaccurately. Though most of them skimmed the surface of the river, Charmander was angered because of when Squirtle used water gun on him. Because of this, Charmander's attacks went faster and did more damage. Soon, Totodile was out of breath. Charmander was about to finish Totodile, when John shouted, "Hold up, Charmander."

John searched through his pocket, and found what he was looking for. 'Two left,' he thought, 'Better make the first one count.' Taking the item out of his pocket, he pressed the button. "Hope this works," he muttered. Then, he shouted, "Pokéball! Go!" and hurled the pokéball with all his might. It hit Totodile squarely on the head, and the big jaw pokémon entered the sphere. As it shook, John hoped that the little crocodile would be captured. And so he was. The light went out, and John approached the ball. Popping it open, the energy from inside the ball solidified into Totodile. John went into explaining how he and Charmander worked, but Totodile was much more preoccupied with the river. Actually, he was preoccupied with the gigantic sea serpent rising from the river, to be more precise.

John noticed Totodile's distraction and turned in time to see the creature's gargantuan head reaching for them. The three of them promptly did the smartest thing possible: run away. Looking back, however, John saw that a tadpole-like creature was strolling towards them from under the serpent. "Gyarados," he muttered, "and Poliwhirl." As Poliwhirl approached, Charmander realized all that had been going on. Since John had been asleep, he obviously didn't understand. But Totodile tried to tell him how Poliwhirl hypnotized prey into going right to Gyarados. John was more concerned with Gyarados than Poliwhirl, not understanding how both were threats. The fact that Gyarados was at least twenty feet long makes sense as to the confusion.

On the other hand, John knew that anything strolling along under a Gyarados was dumb, ignorant, or had a good reason to be unafraid. Considering Poliwhirl aren't strong against Gyarados, and since the species was highly intelligent, he knew it was the last reason. Noticing the spiral on Poliwhirl's chest, John realized he had seen it momentarily in the river. Remembering that it hypnotizes when it's undulating, he figured it out. John knew how to deal with this situation. Breathing in, he yelled at the top of his lungs, "Go, Totodile!"

The big jaw pokémon appeared startled for only a moment before entering battle mode. Hitting Poliwhirl with a water gun was Totodile's main objective, as it would block visual contact with the spiral, and thusly hypnosis. Poliwhirl, however, had better evasion tactics than Totodile. Almost every shot missed completely. To the shock of everyone watching the battle, Poliwhirl messed up and stepped into a patch of dirt that had recently been hit with Totodile's water gun. 'He always aims where they'll be messed up the most,' thought John. As Poliwhirl's foot became hopelessly stuck in the mud, Totodile began to walk away from the battle. Angered, Gyarados launched a hydro pump technique at Charmander.

Charmander looked towards the flood with recognition. It looked just like Squirtle's water gun from his angle. This was also the cause of the torrent. This was his problem. Then, so fast that no one could understand it, the attack stopped in mid-air. The water stayed in the air in front of Charmander, though a lot of steam was coming away from the area. Gyarados looked at the scene in utter shock. As the massive amount of water evaporated, John saw something that, to this day, he still swears as to have actually seen. He says he saw two birds, each focusing their energy completely on the hydro pump. And atop one of them, he saw someone. A person who seemed familiar.

The remnants of the attack were sent hurtling back towards Gyarados. The mighty water dragon recoiled at the blast, now heated to unbearable temperatures. As the atrocious pokémon was bathed in the scalding flood, John decided that then would be the best time to leave the area. The fact that the water was beginning to approach him was a good incentive. Reaching the forest, John couldn't help but wonder. The mysterious figure seemed far away, but despite this, he seemed familiar. And the birds made even less sense. How could their powers have reached the blast AND still have enough strength to send it back to Gyarados? Looking around him, he saw Charmander and Totodile on a nearby hill surrounded by trees. Going to join them, John put the figure out of his mind.

AN: Well, John now has another pokémon. With this new addition to the team, will his luck get any better? Who knows! You'll just have to wait to find out.


	7. Teal Forest

Blue Mountain League: Prologue

Disclaimer: I never have and never will own Pokémon. It is a Game Freak product

Chapter 7: Teal Forest Guard

Well, last time John was hypnotized and almost eaten by a team of Poliwhirl & Gyarados. The two would have succeeded, if not for the brave thinking of a Totodile, that joined the team! Now with two pokémon & a pokéball left, John is optimistic about his future in this untamed wilderness that is the Blue Mountain Range!

The occasional tree beside the river had become a whole forest. Charmander eyed Totodile with slight suspicion. Being new to how things worked, Totodile had no idea that John's greatest strength was the power of… improvisation! Totodile always planned ahead, always thought out every little detail, and always calculated victory first. John, on the other hand…

As they advanced through the forest, Charmander noticed a strange plant. Rubbing his eyes, he looked again. This time, the plant wasn't there. Confused, and slightly afraid, Charmander looked straight ahead. Looking around, he barely heard John talking as he noticed things moving in the trees.

"It's weird how there's a path right in the middle of the forest, huh, Charmander?" asked John. Of course, the reptile was too busy looking around to hear him. "Or is this the way things are here, Totodile?" questioned John, this time to the small crocodile. Totodile just shook his head to say no, that path was unusual. Despite the fact that it would be blatantly obvious to anyone in his or her right minds, the forest itself was moving. John had recently fallen through a hole in a cave, almost eaten by a thing about 4 times longer than he was tall, and had been hypnotized by a tadpole. Aside from that, he was fine.

Of course, Charmander noticed easily. Every little shift in the forest was like an earthquake to Charmander: every little change was obvious. Charmander's predatory nature and senses allowed him to know the forest was moving. It wasn't something **in **the forest, it **was** the forest. He jumped back as he saw a leaf slowly approaching. Fear was not in Charmander's mind, only instinct. And that instinct told him to move quickly, and not to look up.

Totodile, however, felt that looking up was a good idea, and did so. All he saw were the leaves of trees and vines going from treetop to treetop. He simply didn't notice that the vines were moving, shuffling, shifting through the branches. Not seeing anything that could be threatening, he merely kept on walking. He bumped into Charmander due to the former pokémon's lack of care and the latter's instinctive reactions. Neither had much time to react however, because John had just reached a clearing.

"Wow! This is amazing! Who would know that a vast place like this was under a mountain?" he asked to no one in particular. He was astounded by the fact that there was grass as far as the eye could see, or until the Meganium rushing towards him blocked the view, depending on where you looked. Of course, he was more interested in the pokémon as soon as he noticed it. After all, wouldn't you notice a long-necked dinosaur-like creature with flower petals around its neck?

John identified it because of its antennae. Remembering all he had learned, John recognized the calming scent that Meganium's petals released. The calming scent made him oblivious to how Charmander and Totodile were freaking out. Despite the fact that if Meganium continued to run at him he would likely have his arms broken, John stood admiring the beauty of the clearing. The only thing that made John able to use his arms an hour later was that Totodile hit the ground with a water gun. Meganium, unable to stop, ran into the newly formed mud. As Meganium sank, Charmander noticed Chikorita, the lowest form of Meganium, coming out into the open.

With Meganium panicking, you would think that John would have regained his senses. But because Meganium's petals were still above the mud (which wasn't really that deep, and only surprising to Meganium), John still wouldn't move. However, the Chikorita were much more curious than violent. The little leaf pokémon slowly approached the lizard pokémon. Though Totodile looked on with minor interest, Charmander was fully alert.

John, being still affected by the aroma, was unable to respond to the slowly moving grass-types. But he could still look around, and saw numerous Bayleaf who were unsure as to their best course of action. Aside from the fact that he had never seen one before, John could care less. The calm made him remember a battle, one in which his idol had emerged victorious against his greatest foes…

Totodile was beginning to fear the seemingly endless waves of Grass-types when a loud roar caused the Chikorita and Bayleef to pause. Emerging from the forest, surrounded by Bulbasaur and Ivysaur, was a wise Venusaur. At this point, Meganium's calming scent wavered, and John was in awe of the large Grass/Poison Type Venusaur. Thinking back, he remembered that Venusaur was the fully evolved form of Bulbasaur, one of the starter pokémon he could have chosen.

Venusaur pulled Meganium out of the mud with his vines and started to question the Herb Pokémon. Though Meganium was Rash and quick to assume, the Seed Pokémon Venusaur was more Careful and understanding. Charmander was also awed, but by the mighty flower on Venusaur's back. Even though he didn't know much of Grass-types, he understood that the bulb planted in a Bulbasaur's back at birth would flower when it evolved, and would grow with each evolution. He knew that Venusaur had evolved from Ivysaur a long time ago, due to the large stretch from the first bulb to the inner flower.

Totodile, meanwhile, was paying close attention to Venusaur and Meganium's 'conversation.' From what he could figure, Grass-types lived in this forest, and each species of pokémon had their own territory. Apparently, Venusaur was in charge of the whole forest, but allowed each group to govern themselves. It also appeared that Meganium was not one to allow strangers or travelers in his forest, though if Totodile knew that he was with the first traveler to ever even go near the forest, he would have been shocked.

Meganium broke everyone out of his or her thoughts with a Razor Leaf, which Venusaur easily shrugged off. "What's his problem?" asked John, who was trying his best to understand what Venusaur had been saying. Venusaur responded in yet another stream of words and terms that only make sense to pokémon. Nodding and pretending to understand, he failed to realize that this only made Meganium angrier.

He's pretending he knows what you're saying! shouted Meganium. Venusaur just shook his head and said, He is only trying to be polite. You know that he and his friends meant us no harm. Why not give him a chance to explain himself?

Totodile was listening intently. Both had different opinions, and were both adamant. However, Meganium failed to see Venusaur's side of the matter, and only managed to see his own. Venusaur had obviously worked on seeing events from as many perspectives as possible, which gave the Big Jaw Pokémon even more respect for him.

The rustling of the branches above his head once more preoccupied Charmander. Looking up, he noticed not vines, but a shadow. Before he could speak out, the figure had disappeared into the forest. Turning his head back towards the Grass-types, he found the discussion was over.

Later that afternoon, Venusaur was ready to help John and his pokémon get on their way. Always wise and knowing, he had some final words of advice for our heroes.

Meganium feels that battles are all that humans want pokémon for, said Venusaur. This is obviously not the case. Your trainer cares deeply about you, and would risk himself for your benefit, if he felt it at all necessary. Hope that it should never come to that, for if the time comes, he will most assuredly feel it vital to the situation.

John, still not understanding a word, nodded and turned to leave. Charmander and Totodile, however, had a slight laugh at their trainer's expense, before joining him on their voyage away from the forest of Venusaur.

Despite being led in the direction out of the forest, John had managed to find another one not long after. Becoming lost in this second forest would have been embarrassing if any other humans were around, but John didn't realize it was just a distant part of the original forest. Looking up once more, Charmander saw the shadow from before as it dropped towards them…

AN: I love adding suspense! I've been working on other stuff since I started this, so of course it took me a while, but this chapter is important near the end…


	8. Shadow in the Wind

Blue Mountain League: Prologue

Disclaimer: It's hard enough coming up with good chapter ideas… Maybe I'll one day work for Nintendo…

Chapter 8: Shadow in the Wind

Well, we last left our wayward hero and his pokémon as a mysterious shadow jumped out of the treetops on their heads. This had happened only after they had a strange encounter with a psychotic Meganium and a wise Venusaur. John looked up in time to see the odd creature fall. He actually didn't need to look, as the pokémon landed easily in front of them.

Whipping out his pokédex, John heard the voice say, "Mewtwo. New Gecko Pokémon. Fire/Water Type. Evolves at Level 639 to Rukario. Nests in Route 2945 of Kanto." This was, of course, his first clue that his pokédex was busted. The second was when the pokémon said, What did it say? Though John couldn't understand the language of Pokémon, he got the gist of it when Charmander and Totodile pointed at the wires hanging out all over, and at the busted lens.

John, receiving a small electric shock, was finally well aware that his pokédex had broken when he fell down the hole (Chapter 4). In fact, he had slightly remembered something hard break his fall… Looking at the ruins, he was ecstatic to hear the voice of the new pokémon. He had to identify it by memory, which was simple: It was a Treecko, used as a Starter Pokémon in the Hoenn Region. The only problem with that was that he was no where near the Hoenn Region. Or so he thought…

Treecko just looked at the three of them. John thought of getting out his last pokéball, but decided against it. 'He got his pokémon to join him willingly, so I should be able to as well!' he thought. As you know, his thoughts don't always turn out to be correct. In fact, he has around a 50 chance. Treecko waved his hand for them to follow. What they saw was amazing.

In front of them was an ancient tree. It was incredibly large, so much so that if you were to climb to the top, you would see for a long way. And if you were to fall, you would have a long time to wave goodbye. A very long time, during which you could take a nap and still not miss anything. Looking up into the branches approximately twenty thousand kilometres above, he saw a swarm of Treecko. Thinking 'no way could they survive up there!' he soon realized that they weren't as high up as he had thought. They were in the lower branches only, which were low enough for him to see the individual leaves.

Regardless, Charmander was in awe. And in the true Water-type fashion, Totodile entered his pokéball to get away from the massive amount of Grass-types. The many Treecko began to climb down. The leader seemed to be a more powerful Treecko, almost old enough to be a Sceptile. John thought to himself about the three ways for a pokémon could evolve: Level, Circumstance, and Age. Age only came into play with those that evolved through level, but that meant Treecko. A dialogue happened between the two Treecko (the one that jumped at John and the leader). The approximate translation was:

Why are humans here?

How should I know?

Could they have come to harm our Tree?

I doubt it. He has a Fire-type, but also a Water-type. Perhaps he is merely lost?

Should I watch him for our tribe?

If you wish to. It would do you much good to go with a human. They learn many lessons and teach them to others.

I will only go if the Water-type can defeat me.

John was, of course, stuck watching this conversation again. He really didn't like how pokémon could understand each other purely through use of tones and gestures. He was able to understand the pointing at him, then at his Charmander, and then at Totodile's pokéball. He knew that it was a formal challenge against his Big Jaw Pokémon.

"Go, Totodile!" shouted John as Treecko stared him down. Neither noticed a lone figure watching in the tree, high above what any Treecko or human could stay conscious at. As they fought, the tribe of Treecko looked on. One young Treecko in particular watched carefully. Maybe I could fight that well, he thought. Little did he know that would be his fate.

Totodile was struggling to stay in the battle… Until he figured out that his opponent was the same level as he was, and didn't know any Grass-type moves. All the Wood Gecko Pokémon knew was Pound, which didn't do much. Totodile lunged, jaws agape, and tried to Bite Treecko. Instead, Totodile let out a Water Gun. Treecko, realizing the experience that could be gained from a journey, pretended to be greatly weakened by every attack. The elder watched, and understood. The others didn't know that their friend was pulling his attacks.

Totodile also knew the truth of the battle, and motioned for John to use a pokéball. Treecko was not used to the device, and was unable to resist. Nor had he wanted to, the elder reminded himself. The young one had finally learnt what he needed to about battle, still not understanding the truth. John let Treecko out to let him say good-bye to his friends. The elder just nodded, while the others gave their consents and congratulations for being able to stray from their tree. As all Treecko and their trainers know, a Treecko can only leave its tree if it has been captured.

And so it came to pass, that John captured himself a Treecko, at the largest tree known to man. If he had known that the tree had in fact died years ago, he would have not only been shocked, he would have been highly confused. For you see, a very famous trainer had captured a pokémon at that tree years before he had been born: A Treecko, which had become one of his much-envied pokémon…

AN: More of the plot revealed! And now that John finally has Treecko, his team is complete! For now…


	9. Nincademy!

Blue Mountain League: Prologue

Disclaimer: I have 0 of Pokémon shares…

Chapter 9: Nincademy!

When we last left off, John had run into a group of Treecko at a tree which touched the sky. After a 'fierce' battle between Totodile and one particularly strong Treecko, John's last pokéball was used to capture the Wood Gecko Pokémon. However, all this was only after he had realized that his pokédex was broken. Now, however, John has three pokémon to help him on his journey. From the mysterious forest, he continues his journey through the odd region under Mt. Moon.

"We've been wandering for days!" complained John. Far from the forests, they now approached the first few mountains. On his journey, caves had resulted in his getting lost under a mountain. Beyond that, he had almost been eaten by a Gyarados, destroyed by a Meganium, and killed. With no food, no water, no shelter, and no pokémon, he would have died days ago. You can live for a few weeks without food, and a few days without water. Treecko picked fruits from the highest trees while Totodile's Water Gun filled large leaves John and his pokémon used to drink from.

Shelter was still missing, but that could be taken care of later. Rain seemed to be on the horizon, with dark clouds looming just over the farthest mountaintops. With little to do all day, Charmander just started a fire using his Ember attack. All they had to work with were a few fallen logs, which were decomposing and easily burned. When those were gone, there was no more wood for the fires.

John, though not used to survival situations, knew that the few trees around them could be cut down with enough power. So, bringing Charmander to one of the trees, he shouted, "Metal Claw!" Sure enough, Charmander's Metal Claw cut through the tree. Though multiple strikes were needed to cut through all the wood, they soon had more lumber. Returning to their make-shift campsite, John found food and water. Treecko and Totodile, obviously exhausted, were still working a bit until they saw John return.

"Looks good guys! Let's eat!" All three pokémon started to run towards the food, but they were suddenly surrounded by multiple Ninjask. 'Even without my Pokédex, I know that Ninjask are fast. And with Double Team, it may be hard to hit most of them. The longer I wait, though, the faster they get. And three pokémon aren't much of a match for…' John realized that, during the time the Ninjask appeared and the time he tried to count, there was a significant increase in the Bug pokémon.

From above, a Shedinja descended. Food for the trainees should be gathered by them, not by humans! Don't go helping them in their training when you yourselves are too slow to take food from pokémon restrained to the ground!

John, being the only human, had no understanding of what was said. However, since he was the only human, everyone else understood them. All the Ninjask gave a sort of aerial bow to Shedinja, and backed away. Charmander, Totodile, and Treecko just looked at the Ghost pokémon with a sort of interest.

Trainees of what? asked Totodile suspiciously. Upon asking this, multiple Nincada emerged from the ground. All looked inexperienced, in great contrast with their Ninjask counterparts. They looked uncertain, unfocused, and nervous. However, since no pokémon other than a Bug pokémon can accurately read the facial features and body language of any insect, a glance from Shedinja added fear to their demeanour; all while being ignored by John, Charmander, Totodile, and Treecko.

Did you know Nincada had organized groups? asked Totodile. Both Charmander and Treecko shook their heads. This is the first time I've even met any, responded Charmander. Makes sense, they're very reclusive. No one is sure what they're ever up to. Most everyone thinks they're legends, but there are always signs that they're in the area, mentioned Treecko.

Fast bugs, but not social ones. I find it interesting that pokémon with Leech Life live in such large groups. Most pokémon with that attack are vampiric anti-social killers with a tendency to surround and drain all life from the prey… thought Totodile out loud. They soon reached a clearing that brought fear to all of them. In the middle was a stack of Shedinja, lying lifeless. Shedinja flew over to them, and the Ninjask followed. All but one Nincada joined them.

Psst! Help us! said the remaining Nincada. When we evolve into Ninjask, our old body becomes Shedinja. Shedinja protect their Ninjask, but that Shedinja took over! He's invincible!

And I can use Mind Reader. What a pity you have to die like this, as so many others have, said Shedinja. Apparently, no one noticed that the Ghost Bug had heard them from atop his throne of corpses. Instantly, his Ninjask surrounded them and used Leech Life. Treecko leapt out in time to watch as the bugs began draining each other of health. Totodile ducked under them, achieving the same result.

John, not being able to understand pokémon, was quite surprised when the bugs began to bite him and drain him. Charmander saw this, and his tail fire burst with an explosion. As he lunged for the closest Ninjask, his eyes went blank as Shedinja read his mind. A well-aimed Shadow Ball knocked the Fire pokémon away.

Nincada fought against his own kind, striking them with his claws. A sudden glowing brought everyone's attention away from their respective battles. The Nincada who rebelled was evolving!

Shedinja began charging up a Shadow Ball, but Totodile jumped at him, his jaws wide and ready to bite. The Shadow Ball hit Totodile as a Ninjask emerged from the new Shedinja. The newly-evolved pokémon spoke to John. Us Shedinja have telepathy. That's how he could control the Ninjask. He's a tyrant! But he's invincible, except against super-effective hits! He's weak against Fire, so Charmander can beat him!

"The voices in my head are right again! Charmander CAN beat Shedinja! Charmander, use Ember on Shedinja!" John turned to find all of the enemy Ninjask happily sucking Charmander of his life energy. He was about to curse his luck when Charmander used Ember. With the Blaze ability, the Ninjask were forced off by his fire, and the Ember headed straight for Shedinja. He launched a Shadow Ball when he heard that fire was heading for him, and the two attacks collided in mid-air.

The explosion was massive. As the dust settled, John and his pokémon were shocked to find that the powerful Ember had matched Shadow Ball exactly in power, and mere sparks were all that remained. Shedinja had as much of a laugh as an empty shell can have, until a single spark landed on it. Its halo disappeared, and it fell into the pile.

"That was weird… Wait, Shedinja are so weak that any damage beats them. How could it stand up to everyone?"

Whenever a Nincada evolved, he would hit the new Shedinja with a Shadow Ball. Since Ghost attacks are strong against other Ghosts, he would beat the new Shedinja without trying. Because Ninjask don't naturally learn any super-effective moves, we couldn't fight back. On behalf of all the Ninjask, I thank you.

"No… Problem… So, wait, the dead bugs can talk in my mind? Hey, since you can talk to me, do you know any way out of this place?"

What is this 'out' you speak of?

John sighed. "Great. Well, see ya!"

And with that, our heroes journeyed forward, with no particular purpose in mind, only hoping to survive. Who knows where they will go next time? Only time will tell…


	10. The Symbiosis

Blue Mountain League: Prologue

Disclaimer: This is the only story I do these for, since it's hard to say I don't own it a million different ways…

Chapter 10: The Symbiosis

During John's last adventure, he and his pokémon met a group of Nincada and Ninjask that served an aggressive Shedinja. A wayward Shadow Ball hit Totodile in the middle of his Bite attack, and Charmander used his Blaze ability to defeat the weak Ghost pokémon. A new, friendlier Shedinja now leads the group, all thanks to John, Charmander, Totodile, and Treecko.

Our heroes are now near a small grove. Between the forests behind them and the looming mountains before them, such an oasis should seem to be quite the wonderful vacation spot. However, they are weary in their journey under the mountain, in this odd world. Seeing a small creek just outside the trees would be enough to excite them, but there is no such joy to be found.

Food! Treecko spotted a banana hanging from the trees. He ran forward to get one, but was attacked by a white blur. "Vigo! Vigoroth vigo Vigoroth!" This translates roughly into Hey! What are you thinking? Treecko landed, mostly unharmed, as the blur slowed and showed itself to be a Vigoroth. John pulled out the pokédex.

"Mankey, the spur ball pokémon. It enjoys having its sensitive organs smashed between a pair of stone boulders and…" John put it away, remembering that it was broken. "Oh well… Why is a Vigoroth so aggressive, anyway? I know they can't sleep, but it just attacked for no reason!"

No reason? Are you stupid? You aren't the first fools who tried to take food, but you're the first who doesn't get it quickly! Vigoroth shouted more at John, but since the Wild Monkey Pokémon had never met a human, he didn't know that humans can't understand pokémon. "Oh, right. Why didn't I think of it before? Vigoroth don't like it when people take their bananas. No one likes having their bananas taken, after all. I'm not fond of bananas, but I never thought of what Treecko might like."

I don't like it when people take my bananas, that's for sure! said the tree. Treecko, Charmander, and Totodile looked at the tree in shock as the grove started moving. John knew the pokémon from the sight of them. "Tropius…" The large Flying/Grass pokémon made sense, since they grew bananas on their body to feed themselves. However, the pokémon themselves seemed weak.

From the backs of the Tropius came the Slakoth. One climbed the neck of a Tropius and grabbed a banana. Others imitated this motion, and one Tropius lowered her head so John and his pokémon could have some. We're very kind, most of us, but Vigoroth is very protective.

John remained more or less oblivious to the verbal exchange, instead looking over the Tropius and Slakoth. 'Slakoth look a lot like Vigoroth, but just have less energy. If the pokédex is ever fixed, I hope it can tell me more about them…' Nostalgia hit John as he remembered Pallet Town as it was. The pokédex slipped out of his pocket, guided by clawed hands. He barely felt the moment, but heard the device beeping as a Slakoth pressed buttons on it.

"Hey! Give that back!" Taking the red machine back from the pokémon, John saw that the Slakoth data was entered, and that there was a growing bar. It said 'Auto-Repair 1 completed'. Looking on the back, he saw the Auto-Repair button. Turning it back over, he noticed the Help button for the first time. The button was sunken into the machine, but when the Auto-Repair meter reached 2, it popped out from the system. Pressing it, John saw the 100 features of the pokédex.

Aside from the programs he knew about, there was one called 'Strategy Memo'. He tried to activate it, but it didn't work. Meanwhile, his pokémon were busy entertaining the Slakoth and Tropius.

Totodile was dancing, holding his fingers up while making the accompanying music. The Slakoth and Tropius were astounded by the miracles of Totodile, such as his creation of fingers merely by touching, and the ability to separate his index finger and thumb when in the form of a circle. Vigoroth looked on disgusted until a sight covered the horizon.

Vigoroth shouted loudly, warning everyone that the shadow of the horizon could be seen. John looked and saw more Dustox than most people saw in their lifetime. Each beat of their wings sent thousands of tiny poisonous particles into the air. Every pokémon who inhaled them would feel pain and slowly…

One of the more aggressive Tropius flew towards the Dustox, but inhaled the spores. He choked and fell to the ground, seemingly dead. John ran to the Tropius and found that it was snoring. Charmander used Ember without being told to, and the Dustox noticed his tail. One of the faster ones hit the Ember attack head-on, and fainted. Vigoroth entered the fray, slashing all the Dustox he could reach. Several times the spores reached him, but still he did not fall. John saw this, and began to understand. 'Vigoroth's Vital Spirit keeps him from falling asleep! But why are the Dustox here?'

The Tropius began to sleep, and the Dustox descended upon them. As they left the sky, one Tropius woke up and shouted, You cannot eat my bananas!

The battle raged on, until John was put to sleep by the spores. And then he knew no more as his world went black.

To be continued…

AN: I recently realized that the method of noting Pokémon speech wasn't working, so I'm trying a new method. Hopefully it works better.


End file.
